After several rounds of inconclusive discussions during the last one year, the United Front government has finally decided to shelve the proposal to amend Article 356 in order to prevent its misuse. The third meeting of the Inter-State Council yesterday once again failed to arrive at a consensus on any suggested amendments.
The only consensus was to retain the provision in the Constitution, Union home minister Indrajit Gupta said.
Prime Minister I K Gujral had the final say on the issue when he intervened at the ISC meeting attended by 20 chief ministers and Union ministers. He said since there was no consensus, the ISC should leave it for the time being. In any case, there was no immediate danger of imposition of Presidents rule on any state, he said.
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The council, however, ratified the consensus arrived in its standing committee on devolving 29 per cent of the central pool of taxes to the states as per the provisions of the ninth finance commission. States stand to gain Rs 5,000 crore in the next two years. Union finance minister P Chidambaram is expected to move a constitutional amendment to give effect to this.
Chief ministers reiterated their respective known positions on Article 356, Gupta said, and said only Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal strongly demanded that the provision be scrapped altogether. Union defence minister Mulayam Singh Yadav also expressed himself strongly against any dilution of the provision.
Gupta said there was mixed reaction from the states on the question of issuing show cause notice to any state before the imposition of Presidents rule. Some felt that this was not desirable.
On the issue of parliamentary approval by two-thirds majority for such a move, many felt that in the prevailing political scenario, it would be difficult to secure it.
There was no consensus on this highly sensitive and complicated political question, Gupta said.
Gujral said before making any changes in the provision, there should be discussions, persuasion and consultations among all parties. He said he was not forcing any decision on anybody.
We also take notice that as the country is developing, we are also seeing a new type of polity is emerging. (It) is that we have now almost every political party in the country participating in power either in the states or at the Centre, Gujral said.
Karnataka said imposition of Article 356 should always be subsequent to an opportunity being given to the state in the form of a notice.
Wherever due to critical conditions such an issue of notice is dispensed with, it is advisable to keep the state Assembly in suspended animation and such an Assembly could be dissolved only after the Parliament ratifies the proclamation of suspended animation, state Chief Minister J H Patel said in his speech at the inter-state council meeting here.